Archives of the Invisible Sword, book 1. Harlequin, 2019.
ISBN: 9781489252807.
(Age: 13+) Highly recommended. Fans of exotic worlds and brave
heroines will love The Eyes of Tamburah and long for the
next in the series. Shyla is an outcast with yellow hair, cursed for
being sun-kissed by the Sun Goddess. Brought up by monks she has
left the monastery and now lives in the underground city of Zirdai,
trying to make a living as a researcher who finds the location of
lost relics for treasure hunters and the archaeologists. She keeps
her head down and is shunned by everyone except Banqui, the Water
Prince's archaeologist. When he begs her to help him find the
legendary Eyes of Tamburah, which can give great power to the one
who wields them, she finds herself embroiled in chaos. Banqui is
imprisoned and Shyla is blamed for the theft of the jewels. With the
Water Prince and the Heliacal Priestess determined to have the Eyes
of Tamburah, Shyla tries to find them, with soldiers and deacons in
hot pursuit.
Snyder has written a fast moving adventure story set in a believable
world, where it is so hot that everyone must live underground and
where water is really valuable. The reader is taken from level to
level as Shyla searches for the Eyes and gains an insight into the
class system that exists, with those who can pay for it given access
to water and food, and a large group of people who live apart
stealing food and water. The opulence of the Water Prince's level
contrasts with that of the ones who live away from society, and the
level where prisoners are kept and tortured is grim indeed.
Shyla's role as a researcher is pivotal to the story. She is
intelligent and curious and determined to do the right thing, even
when it is most dangerous to herself. She won't leave Banqui to die
or those living on the edge of society to be tortured. Instead she
is prepared to make huge sacrifices for what she believes in.
Add a slow burning romance, a secret society, plenty of action and
suspense, twists and turns and you have a wonderful story that will
make the reader want to pick up other books by this talented author,
like The
glass trilogy.
Pat Pledger
The yellow bird sings by Jennifer Rosner
Picador, 2020. ISBN: 9781529032437. 294pp., paperback. (Age: Secondary). Historical fiction. Sniff, sniff (wipes tears away from eyes). What a captivating and emotional tale about the love between a mother and daughter with a wonderful connection to music and how far a mother would go to save her child. The yellow bird sings is a wonderfully written debut novel from Jennifer Rosner. Poland 1941, Roza and Shira manage to sneak away as Nazi soldiers are rounding up Jews in their home town. They find safety in a dirty old barn hiding in the hayloft. Here in the hayloft the aim for Roza is the wellbeing of Shira her 5-year-old daughter. She nurtures, educates and protects her as much as she can. Roza invents a story based on a little yellow bird to keep Shira occupied. Shira is a musical prodigy who hears entire passages in her head but she cannot make a sound while she is in hiding. This imaginary little yellow bird helps keeping her safe. The early chapters tell us the story of living in the barn with the help of the farmer Henryk and his wife Krystyna but there is a price to pay. Then due to dangers a decision is made and both Roza and Shira are separated and are at the mercy of unknown dangers. The yellow bird sings is an emotional historical fiction book based around true stories of Jewish children being hidden during WWII. We learn of some of the atrocities committed against Polish Jews and glimpses of the Resistance movements with not too much graphic details, so it's a bit safer for students to read. I loved reading The yellow bird sings and think it's a great addition to a library. If you enjoyed The boy in the striped pyjamas I'm pretty sure you would love this. Maria Komninos
Do you love bugs? by Matt Robertson
Bloomsbury, 2020. ISBN: 9781526609519.
(Age: 6+) I will say at the outset that this book will break some
poor entomologist's heart. The ease with which Robertson mixes bugs
(sucking insect) with beetles (insect), spiders (arachnid), snails
(gastropod) and worms (animal) is surprising, and an astute teacher
will use the opportunity to differentiate between these species as
the book is read.
That said, I enjoyed the humour in this offering, each double page
showing readers creatures with which many people have a 'don't touch'
relationship. So we are presented with ants, butterflies, moths,
spiders, stick insects, bees, worms, grasshoppers, snails and
dragonflies, all surrounded by a splatter of facts which will
intrigue younger readers.
The funny anthropomorphic illustrations will cause readers to laugh
out loud as they dip into the pages full of facts and hints about
the animal being observed.
The opening pages of this fun paperback gives a plea for children
not to be taken aback by these creatures, but to love them as they
have been around since the dinosaurs. Robertson also gives some
rules on engagement: do not bother bees, be respectful of the stick
insect, step over the snail, and so on, impelling children to look
more closely at the creatures in their gardens.
Two pages tell of moths and butterflies, telling the reader why the
butterfly is so colourful and how delicate its wings are. The next
page is about the moth and we are told why they come out at night
and how they get their moisture. All very interesting to the curious
minds of younger readers.
The information is interesting, but as the book is part way between
an information and a fun read, it will not be easy to use without a
contents page and index. Themes: Insects, Beetles, Arachnids, Garden
creatures.
Fran Knight
Slime by David Walliams
Harper Collins 2020 ISBN: 9780008349141.
(Ages: 8+). Highly recommended. Slime is another humorous
and entertaining read by bestselling children's author David
Walliams. The frenetic energy and action conveyed in the story leave
the reader racing through to the final, hopefully calm and happy,
ending. Wheelchair bound Ned is the main character who suffers at
the hands of his older extremely horrid and unkind sister Jemima.
His birthday is coming up and she has devised the cruellest and most
dastardly trick to play on him yet. However Ned is on to Jemima and
beats her at her own game. The accidental creation of Slime leads to
Ned exacting revenge on all those adults who have wronged the
children of Mulch Isle. With Slime on his side Ned is able to
payback Sir Walter Wrath, Headmaster of Mulch School for Revolting
Children who delights in expelling children, Edmund and Edmond Envy,
the toyshop owners who hate children and steal their money, Madame
Solencio Sloth, the laziest and meanest piano teacher ever, Captain
Pride, the park keeper who allows no child into the park, Glen and
Glenda Glutton, the ice cream van owners who trick the children into
handing over their money and drive away. The worst adult of all,
Aunt Greta Greed owns Mulch Isle, has 101 cats all called Tiddles
and is related to Ned.
Reminiscent of Roald Dahl, the adults all get what they deserve plus
more in hilarious moments and very child appealing ways. Throughout
the story are clever illustrations and bold words keeping the reader
focused and engaged in this highly amusing tale. Themes: Humour,
Siblings, Slime, Cruel Adults, Disability, Revenge.
Kathryn Beilby
Elizabella and the Haunting of Lizard Lake Zoe Norton Lodge & Georgia Norton Lodge
Walker, 2020. ISBN: 9781760651855.
(Ages: 7-9) Recommended. Sisters TV presenter and comedian Zoe
Norton Lodge and graphic designer and illustrator, Georgia Norton
Lodge continue with the hijinks and humour of their Elizabella
series. What pranks can Elizabella and her friend Minnie pull off at
the annual Year 4 camp - food dye in the showerheads or in the
teacher's coffee machine? With Mr Gobblefrump Acting Principal of
Bilby Creek Primary School in charge, will there be any
opportunities for fun at all?
When Elizabella's frill neck lizard Lizzie overhears their campsite
is at Lizard Lake, he decides to stowaway in her bag. With high
hopes of meeting lizard friends, he can communicate and philosophise
with like-minded creatures. 'Don't worry, be happpy' is the camp
motto, and Agapantha/Christine, Star, Minnie and Mo are the happiest
counsellors ready to help the kids have the best time. Even Mr
G-Frump's swept up in happiness, his strict ways are set aside. The
Opportunity Course proves challenging, but the campers and even Mr
G-Frump prove themselves able to conquer their fears.
With ghostly hauntings, midnight lake escapades in a canyes not a
canoe and curious dreams, Elizabella and Minnie find themselves
solving mysteries and making a new friend. Lizzie's explorations add
to the fun; who knew camp lizards spoke Lizish and not English? With
plenty of delicious food cooked by Miss Goose, loads of fun
activities and time to uncover camp secrets, Elizabella's time at
camp is brimful of happiness.
Georgia Norton Lodge's fun illustrations capture the highlights,
from the happy mantras to Dougal the missing counsellor's
reappearance and Lizzie and Barney's foodie forays. Zoe Norton
Lodge's descriptive style, her love of unusual names and word twists
to promote happiness add to the appeal. Elizabella and the
Haunting of Lizard Lake is just right for readers who enjoy
quirky characters, humour in school and family stories.
Themes: Camping, Mysteries, Humour.
Rhyllis Bignell
Anna K by Jenny Lee
Penguin, 2020. ISBN: 9780241420218. 400pp.
(Age: Adult - Older adolescents) This is a story of rich adolescents
who attend wealthy schools, who like to party often and hard, using
drugs to enable an even wilder time and who like to stay out until
the early hours of the morning. Everything they wear is named for
its designer brand, as are their accessories and the cars that they
drive. They only shop in the most expensive stores in the city of
New York, and their social lives seem to be set in the best clubs,
where they drink, and use drugs freely, and party, often, until the
early hours of the morning.
While this story is about these young people's desire to party,
attending school is recognized as being very important in leading on
to their future and thus their careers. In this intense narrative we
are drawn into the frenetic lives of Anna, an exceptional young
woman who falls in love with "Count" Alexi Vronsky, learning about
their high level of competition, that is, to be the best, or to have
the best, in everything they do. Parents seem to figure in their
lives to a small degree, being busy making money themselves.
Money is at the heart of this novel, and its presence fuels both the
lifestyle, the choices, the futures, and, sadly indeed, the
disasters. While these party people face the challenge to do well
enough at school to enable them to go to the best colleges and
universities, one young man loses his way and his story is deeply
saddening. This aspect reminds the reader of the dramatic aspects of
the much-loved Russian epic tale that is reflected in Lee's book.
Overall, I found this to be a challenging novel. In that it is
intended as an evocation of Tolstoy's Russian epic, Anna
Karenina, we see how this novel serves as a reminder of some
of the pitfalls that young people face, especially in a community
where wealth creates a world of privilege. I would recommend this
book as suitable for both adults and older adolescents. Lee's
evocation of a past novel, one that was a powerful tome for its era,
recreates the disturbing reality of the modern world in her
depiction of one particular way of life.
Elizabeth Bondar
Walk the Wire by David Baldacci
Macmillan, 2020. ISBN: 9781509874521.
(Age: senior secondary/adult) Amos Decker and Alex Jamison have no
idea why the FBI has sent them to London North Dakota. On the
surface they are investigating a murder, but why is the FBI
involved? London is in the middle of no where a boom and bust town
now enjoying another boom due to oil extraction by fracking.
The murder is unusual in that the body, discovered by a hunter, has
been autopsied and dumped. Decker and Jamison work with the local
police lieutenant Joe Kelly and the funeral home owner who is also
the coroner. The powers that be in London have been there a long
time and know the important people, and that certainly does not
include the oil workers who come and go, but spend their money in
the town. Two wealthy men own almost all worth owning; Dawson is in
control of bars, hotels and apartments used by workers and McClellan
who has the lions share of the fracking business
Add to the mix an old US Air Force installation, now privately run
but with an Air Force officer in charge, the reader gets an inkling
as to why there may be involvement with federal agencies. Despite
the body count Decker and Jamison seem no closer to understanding
what is going on. As leads are followed and people questioned anyone
with answers dies. Another federal agency is involved clandestinely
along with some highly trained and well armed mercenaries but
surprisingly as the body count continues to rise none of the
populace seem to notice!
The Air Force base has unusual goings on, some of which are noticed
by the religious cult that farms next to it, but they keep to
themselves and the wider community are none the wiser. However
Decker eventually gets to the bottom of the history of the base and
why there are problems and why it is being run by a private company.
The murders in London which may have no connection to the base
require the agents to go back to first principles. There is a lot of
money involved, greed, and love, albeit obsessive love. These lead
them back to the main players,the old London families, and their
interactions and prejudices and grudges.
For those who enjoy the genre, especially the Amos Decker series of
which this is the sixth, I've no doubt this will be tried and true
territory. I found the most interesting aspects to be the fracking
information, the religious cult and North Dakota itself. The
characters are rather stereotypical, either tall muscular and
lantern jawed if male or slender willowy and beautiful if female.
The plot is rather unbelievable, but then again it is The United
States. Themes: Crime fiction, USA, FBI, Fracking, North Dakota
(USA).
Mark Knight
Why I love the Earth by Daniel Howarth
Harper Collins, 2020. ISBN: 9780008389109. 26pp., hbk.
Illustrator Daniel Howarth has taken the words of our littlest ones
about why they love this planet and transformed them into charming,
fun illustrations that will appeal and inspire.
Starting with Teacher Bunny showing her class a globe and giving her
class a classic teaching strategy of completing a sentence, she
says, "I love the Earth because . . . "
Then all her students respond with a range of reasons in a series of
double-page spreads that bring together aspects of the planet,
familiar and not-so.
This would be a wonderful book to share with both parents and
children at this time because it is just made for getting our
youngest readers to respond with text and illustration, especially
when we are trying to strike a balance with screen time. Some might
even like to investigate some of the phenomena that are mentioned
such as how old the Earth is or why it has so many colours.
It's a great way to differentiate the curriculum as each follows
something that fascinates them or has piqued their curiosity.
Another picture book that transcends its target age group and opens
up worlds of possibilities.
Barbara Braxton
Surprising stories behind everyday stuff
National Geographic Kids, 2019. ISBN: 9781426335297. 256pp.,
pbk.
They are the things we see and use every day and which are so
familiar we take little notice of them - cameras, mobile phones,
rulers, toilets and even common customs like shaking hands, table
manners and saying gesundheit.
But each has a backstory about its invention or development and in
this intriguing little book from NatGeo Kids, each is explained.
With hand-shaking now discouraged, what are the origins of this
practice anyway? With toilet paper now a nightly news item, what is
the story behind its development and the invention of the toilet?
Using its customary bold, colourful design, with stunning photos,
and jam-packed with awesome facts, there are 10 chapters each with
related inventions to keep young minds entertained and educated for
a long time. Perhaps, if students are no longer in the physical
space known as school, it could serve as a role model for their own
investigation of something common. Perhaps a future edition might
have concepts such as social distancing and self-isolation - what do
these mean, what do they look like and why were they imposed?
While the book answers many questions, it has the potential to pose
so many more, each of which could be a research topic for kids
needing something to do, and with self-choice essential it will
engage them while putting into practice all those information
literacy skills!
Barbara Braxton
The Vanishing Deep by Astrid Scholte
Allen & Unwin, 2020. ISBN: 9781760525576.
(Age: 14+) Highly recommended. Readers will become immersed in a
watery world with Tempe, a 17 year old girl who dives deep below the
waves, scavenging for relics in ruins of the time before the Great
Waves destroyed her planet. Tempe is determined to earn enough notes
to buy twenty four hours with her dead sister Elysea in the facility
on Palindromena, where the dead can be revived for a short time. It
is on Palindromena that Lor lives isolated underground rarely seeing
anyone, guilty about causing the death of his friend in a climbing
accident. When he takes on the task of guiding Tempe through the
twenty four hours that she has with Elysea he finds himself on a
chase to bring them back before the time is up when they escape in
search of their parents.
Scholte is a master at world building. It is easy to imagine a world
where the sea has overtaken big cities lying along the coast and
where the survivors must scavenge to keep alive. The idea of being
able to visit your loved ones for a last twenty four hours is one
that will challenge the reader. Would you really be able to face
seeing someone you loved, knowing that it is only for 24 hours?
Elysea knows that she wants to spend these last 24 hours with her
parents, and she and Tempe take off on a dangerous adventure to find
out what has happened to them.
Told in alternative chapters by Tempe and Lor, it is easy for the
author to identify with both main characters. Tempe has become
strong and independent in the two years since her sister's death and
parents' disappearance and she is determined to find out why the
secrets around her parents' disappearance and Elysea's death. The
mystery of what Lor is doing hiding himself away tantalises too and
secondary characters are all fully fleshed and interesting.
This is a unique dystopian story that will appeal to fans of
speculative fiction as well as those who love a coming of age story.
It would make an interesting literature circle book and teacher
notes are available at the publisher's website. Readers who
enjoyed The vanishing deep will want to read Scholte's other
novel, Four
dead queens which is on the Book of the Year: Older
Readers shortlist 2020.
Pat Pledger
A bear named Bjorn by Delphine Perret
Translated by Antony Shugaar. Gecko Press, 2020. ISBN:
9781776572694. eBook available.
(Ages 6 -8). Recommended. A thoughtful, whimsical story that follows
the daily adventures of a Bear, Bjorn, who lives quietly in a cave.
It is a mixture of animal and human adventures as each of the six
chapters reveals another escapade involving the bear and his other
animal friends. He wins a sofa and decides to leave it in a part of
the forest for everyone to use as it just doesn't really fit into
his cave very well. In another chapter his friend the fox helps him
to organize a fun carnival where all his friends borrow clothes and
wear adornments to celebrate and reflect what they see humans
wearing in clothing catalogues. Later he gets his annual check-up
with the very popular Owl who checks them thoroughly from top to
toe. The chapter called 'Nothing' was weirdly appropriate to
illustrate to a young child that it is okay to just sit and
appreciate the simple things around us, especially during the
restrictions on outdoor entertainment as we self-isolate for Covid
19. It was also interesting to be given an insight into the
processes that the bear took to prepare for hibernation in the last
chapter.
All these adventures are beautifully illustrated using black line
drawings and the book has been published on calming mint-green
pages. Best enjoyed by young independent readers or one to one
reading at home where the illustrations can be enjoyed along with
the story. Themes: Bears, Forests, Friendship.
Gabrielle Anderson
Peppa Pig: Peppa's play date by Neville Astley and Mark Baker
Ladybird, 2020. ISBN: 9780241412237. Board book.
(Age: 1-4) Another in the Peppa Pig series is sure to have
young children delighted as Peppa and her family prepare for a play
date with Peppa's new friends Mandy Mouse and Peggi and Pandora
Panda. Peppa is very excited to be having her friends over. Mummy
Pig puts out lots of games, while Daddy Pig organises the crafts for
the friends to use. However when they arrived Mandy Mouse really
wants to play in the garden and so they all troop outside to play
imaginative games like princesses, pirates and giants.
The Peppa Pig series always extols the virtues of family
life and this is no exception. Mummy and Daddy Pig are happy to
accommodate the children's needs even though the work they did to
set up activities is ignored by the children. Daddy Pig brings out a
wonderful feast for the friends to enjoy in the backyard and a very
happy time is had by them.
Mandy Mouse and Peggi and Pandora Panda are new additions to the
friends of Peppa and it is great to see diversity here with Mandy
Mouse happily playing in her wheelchair and proving to be a leader
among the friends.
This is a feel good book that shows the familiar to the young child
who may just be beginning to experience play dates. It also
emphasises the benefits of the imagination and making your own fun
while sharing it with others.
Pat Pledger
The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Picador, 2020. ISBN: 9781529005127. 256pp.
Maren lives in the tiny settlement of Vardo on a Norwegian island in
the Barents Sea close to the north-east border with Russia. It is
1617, a time when Christianity is concerning itself with devilry and
witchcraft. On Christmas Eve a sudden storm drowns most of the Vardo
menfolk who had put to sea to capture a school of fish. The storm
drowns Maren's fiancee, Dag, her brother Eric and her father as well
as the pastor. Altogether 40 men die and the women of the settlement
grasp at reasons, including the suggestion that the devil sent the
storm. Eric's pregnant wife, Dina, is from the Sami, the indigenous
people of the area and the devout women direct suspicion at her,
saying the Sami can call the devil. After nine days the bodies of
the men begin to wash ashore and the women retrieve the bodies and
store them until the earth thaws enough to bury them and Dina brings
a Sami shaman to watch over the bodies and conduct rites for the
dead creating further conflict. However the need to survive without
the men leads the women to work together and put out to sea, netting
fish as their menfolk had done. Eventually Pastor Nils Kurtsson is
sent to lead the community but some of the women have tasted
independence and found strength in it. When a Lensmann, Hans Koning,
a kind of lord or sherrif, is appointed, he in turn appoints a
Commissioner, Absalom Cornet, to travel to the village, stamp out any
heathen tendencies and promote the church. He brings with him his
bride, Ursa, from Bergen to the south. As Absalom starts to pursue
his agenda, Ursa forms an unlikely friendship with Maren. The
narrative swings from Maren's perspective to Ursa's and they both
watch with horror as the witch hunting in the settlement starts to
unfold.
Based on historical events, the narrative reflects on some of the
uglier aspects of human nature and the redeeming qualities of true
loyalty and friendship. A hitherto unexamined period and setting
that will appeal to readers of historical fiction.
Sue Speck
Snap by Belinda Bauer
Transworld Publishers, 2018. ISBN: 9781784160852.
(Age: Adult - Senior secondary) Highly recommended for lovers of
crime novels. Booker Prize Nominee for Longlist (2018), and
Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Nominee for Shortlist
(2019), Snap is a novel for one or two sittings. It is dark
and engrossing with moments of humorous dialogue to lighten the
story. It also has non stereotypic police officers and a 14 year old
boy, Jack Bright, who is really the hero of the story. Years earlier
Jack had been left in the car with his two sisters when it breaks
down. His mother goes off to get help leaving him to look after his
sisters. Then she doesn't come back, her body found in a ditch days
later. Jack's father cannot cope and leaves the children alone, Jack
once again in charge and having to support them all to keep away
social welfare. He turns to theft to feed and clothe the family,
trying to navigate a house full of newspapers that his sister Joy
uses to make tunnels throughout the house, and a little 6 year old
sister Merry who is precocious. Then there is pregnant Catherine who
wakes up to an intruder in her house and a note that says: 'I could
have killed you', and a knife that she hides in her underwear
drawer. DCI John Marvel who has been banished to Taunton after
failing a job in London, is not particularly interested in solving
the burglaries committed by the Goldilocks burglar, but when he gets
a whiff that a murder might be involved, becomes involved in trying
to solve the cold case of Jack's mother's murder.
Bauer draws a poignant picture of Jack, a boy who breaks into the
homes of happy families and lies in the beds of the children, trying
to remember a happy time in his own life before his mother was
murdered. Goldilocks is the nickname that he is given by the police
and when he finds some evidence that might lead to his mother's
killer, he is determined to get help even if it means that he will
be arrested. The suspense around whether Catherine will be the next
victim of the killer and whether Jack's attempts to keep his family
safe will fail, keep the reader breathless until the stunning end to
the story.
I will certainly be picking up more books by Belinda Bauer. This is
a must for readers who enjoy mysteries and suspense.
Pat Pledger
The good turn by Dervla McTiernan
HarperCollins, 2020. ISBN: 9781460756799.
(Age: Senior secondary - Adult) Highly recommended. If charmed by
enigmatic Detective Cormac Reilly in McTiernan's previous two
novels, The
Ruin and The
Scholar then you will be enthralled by his investigation
style once again in The Good Turn. Here he is still out of
favour at his station at Galway, fighting to remain sane after being
stripped of his team, called away to help in a drug bust. But when
an invalided boy sees a girl kidnapped outside his bedroom window,
Reilly must summon who he can to help. His boss is deaf to his
pleas, and when Garda Peter Fisher follows a strong lead alone, it
ends with the suspect being killed. Fisher is sent out of the way to
a small staton run by his estranged father, while Reilly is relieved
of his post. Reilly flies to Brussels to see Emma, and she suggests
that he resign and they stay in Europe, but Reilly has contacted his
old friend who works for Interpol and together they see that there
are stronger forces at work behind Reilly's shafting.
So he returns to Galway bent on uncovering the web of deceit and
corruption which appears to lie at the heart of the station.
Meanwhile Fisher is contending with his hated father, an self
opinionated old style cop who cuts corners. While investigating a
pair of murders near the town, Fisher realises that things were not
investigated with any purpose, things were overlooked, assumptions
made. Fisher's grandmother is elderly and frail, looked after by an
itinerant young woman and her daughter, blow ins from Dublin.
And so we have a set of gripping, overlapping stories, each one
engrossing and at times heart stopping as Fisher and Reilly
investigate things they are not supposed to, disobeying orders from
above, putting their own careers and lives on the line. Ireland,
Crime fiction, Corruption, Murder.
Fran Knight
